Greenberg Scholar to Shed Light on Middle East Issues

"Narratives of Revolt" is the theme of this fall's Greenberg Middle East Scholar-in-Residence at Skidmore. In a series of events that could be drawn from current headlines, visiting scholar Haggai Ram will be a featured participant in a number of lectures designed to shed light on current developments in the Middle East.

Ram, a senior lecturer in the Department of Middle East Studies at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, will focus on Israeli-Iranian relations as well as the Islamic revolution in discussions scheduled in September. Later in the fall, guest lecturers will focus on Hamas and Hezbollah and their role in conflict and democracy, and an overview of Middle East conflicts.

A member of the Ben-Gurion University faculty since 1994, Ram has also taught at New York University, and at the Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University, both in Israel. He earned bachelor's and master's degrees at Tel Aviv University and a Ph.D. degree from NYU with a dissertation titled "Islamic Symbolism: The Ideology of the Islamic Revolution in Iran as Reflected in the Friday Congregational Sermon."

His teaching specialties have included the history of Islam, the history of the Middle East in the 20th century, and the Iranian revolution of 1979. Ram has lectured widely on aspects of the Iranian revolution and on contemporary developments in the Middle East to scholars throughout the U.S. and the Middle East. During the 2005-06 academic year he co-organized an international workshop called "Exile and Displacement in the Middle East" at Ben-Gurion University.

Ram was named a distinguished international visitor at the Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies at NYU in 2001. His doctoral dissertation received honorable mention from the Foundation for Iranian Studies and the Middle East Studies Association.

The following events are scheduled as part of the Greenberg Middle East Scholar-in-Residence Series this fall at Skidmore. All are free and open to the public.

• 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12 -"Cyrus's Twins: An Unconventional Guide to the History of Israeli-Iranian Relations," by Haggai Ram. Davis Auditorium, Palamountain Hall.
  
  
• 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21 - "Re-reading the Islamic Revolution: From Feb. 11 (1979) to Sept. 11, (2001)," an illustrated conversation with Ram and Hamid Dabashi, Hagop Kevorkian Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. Payne Room, Tang Museum.
  
  
• 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 10 - "Hamas and Hezbollah: Risk, Conflict, and Democracy," by Robert Malley, Middle East and North Africa Program director, International Crisis Group, Washington, D.C. Gannett Auditorium, Palamountain Hall.
  
  
• 8 p.m. Monday, Nov. 6 - "Middle East Conflicts: Rebellion, Revolution, Resistance or Civil War?" by Lisa Anderson, James T. Shotwell Professor of International Relations and dean of the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. Gannett Auditorium.

The Greenberg Middle East Scholar-in-Residence Series is made possible by a gift from Skidmore alumna Jane Greenberg. The series enables the College to host an Israeli scholar who through teaching, lecturing, and participating in campus life, educates the community on a range of topics concerning political life in the Middle East. The Office of the Dean of Special Programs coordinates the Greenberg series.

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